One Piercing Note
}} One Piercing Note It had been mere days since the Dewdrop Pirates had ventured across the surface of the island of the rare animals, and mere days since the rarest of them all --a Cavalier Birdman-- had mysteriously landed upon the spar emanating from their ship's hull, only to propel itself away from the two members of the crew without so much a proper greeting, leaving nothing more in its wake than a torrent of wind. With nothing to remember the bird by, an enigma shrouded itself over the Gaston; had they even come face to face with such a creature? Or had it all been a dream? With their sights set so benightedly upon the Grand Line, Meliodas and Alva looked the part of curious roamers. They were both incredibly eager to learn more about the world around them, passionately so. But to refer to them as pirates was blasphemy. Much like their confrontation with the exotic Cavalier Birdman, they had absolutely no evidence to support such a profound claim. For now they were mere explorers, exploring whatever moved within their near vicinity. This only delayed their ultimate goal of entering the Grand Line, as well, they quite literally visited each individual island they came upon, so in that regard surely this curiosity of theirs was most certainly a curse? Ambiguous to danger as they were, they had been fortunate enough to escape the clasps of horror up until now, seeing very little of what the sea truly had to offer them. But there was a method to the madness that the wind currently portrayed; glistening with a preciously even tune, it was almost as if it were crying out for danger, begging for it to knock on the door of the Dewdrop Pirates. And this time, it promised, matters wouldn't be as easily resolved. - - - Zork Atoll. A ring shaped infrastructure rich and vibrant with all sorts of wildlife. And as to be expected, in the coming of exotic plants were equally exotic animals, who helped themselves to the former on just about every occassion of the day. As unique in appearance as they may have been, the creatures that inhabited this island were far from foul beasts; on the contrary, they were very much the exact opposite. They were calm, sincere, even warm-hearted; they made the best of pets, and for this reason were hunted to no end by poachers who visited on a daily basis. But the monstrosity that had made the island the site of his training at the start of this day was no poacher at all. He was what the Dewdrop Pirates could only pretend to be: a real pirate. A pirate who was known throughout all of East Blue for possessing a whopping bounty of 25,000,000; a pirate who identified himself with the color of his beard, much like countless others in the past; a pirate who wielded the power of a Logia outside of the facets of the Grand Line. He was none other than Bluebeard. With his firstmate, "Soko" --just about the only meaningful member of his crew-- at his side, the blue bearded tyrant reshaped the ground of the jungle beneath his own two feet, desperately trying to comprehend how best to operate the powers of his Devil Fruit. He tore apart whole animals that had come in his way, uprooted entire trees from their place in the dirt, all for the sole purpose of perfecting his abilities. Sure he was a big deal here in the East Blue; but even a pirate as notorious as him knew that were he to have so much as a chance at surviving amongst the monsters of the Grand Line, he'd need to be able to wholeheartedly rely on his Logia powers in battle. In the near distance, the Gaston reeled toward Zork Atoll. Ship of the Dewdrop Explorers, the two scientists were greatly horrified at the sight that welcomed them unto the island; it was like the whole jungle that they had been looking at as they stepped foot onto the beach was being mowed down, one tree at a time. The sand beneath their shoes was shaking, like a precursor to an all too coincidental earthquake. What in the world could it be? Could it perhaps be a large beast that Meliodas would enjoy documenting? Or was it an obscene lumberjack that was collecting wood to make a ship out of? Whatever it was, to say it instantly garnered the interest of the two explorers would have been an understatement. Melodias was full of confusion as he jumped down from his ship, followed by his first mate, Alva. The 16 year old looking 120 year old was quite puzzled. He adjusted his boots and brushed his hair out of his calm blue eyes. They had approached the island as they did any other, hoping to see what creatures hid within its forests. Though they had only found lines of trees falling to some unknown force. "What the hell is going on?" He asked the wind as he stared at the falling trees. "I doubt it's an animal, why would anything destroy its home in such a way." He spoke aloud, question his own knowledge. The earth shook beneath his feet shook as the soft sand sifted around, the rumbling was chaotic. "Alva do you think this is an earthquake?" He asked his companion as he bent down and grabbed a handful of leaves. With a small green flash they turned to a swarm of hummingbirds that flew off into the sky. He hoped they would see something he did not. Alva stared at the ensuing destruction in confusion. "Me-me not certain, ye know? Me mean, me ain't never been in an earthquake, but me not sure it could do something like this unless it be a pretty bad one." He stumbled onto the ground, falling face first into the shifting muds. He sighed in frustration. "Yeah, definitely not an earthquake. It be too long. Me assume it has to be something big as shite, so me thinks it'd be best if we leave it the freak be, don't ya agree with me, Melodias?" he inquired rhetorically, for he knew the answer would be no. It's always been no. He couldn't count on how many times he almost died since his time with Melodias. In fact, the kid was the reason he bought a sword, and a book on how to use it. It cost him a freaking fortune, and the book wasn't all that helpful, but it was at least something he could use if he really had to. Though, normally, Melodias did all the fighting. As Melodias continued to stare off into the distance, ignoring Alva's question, he shook his head disappointedly. "Alright, let's go figure out what the heck it is." Standing in an enclosure of toppled trees, up churned earth and decaying animal corpses, Bluebeard continuously and repeatedly strikes at the ground creating small tremors and cracks in the earth itself. "Farrg tis still ain't right," shouted Bluebeard in frustration as he coats his arm once again in Earth before swinging it towards one of the few standing trees shattering it in his frustration. "If I can nah get this down we ain't gonna last a single Day in th' Grandline," muttered Bluebeard as he was again set about training his Devil Fruit. "Ara ara," Sokolov Anastasiya began, smirking. "Patience is key to this, Bluebeard. It takes time to get an understanding of the abilities the fruits give us." Soko stood in a pile of decayed animal corpses, staring at her captain, observing him as he attempted to acquire an understanding of his powers. She stretched, her long black hair reaching her waist. Her crimson eyes reflecting the light onto the ground below. Her red jacket purposely one size too small, meant to distract her male opposers, as the jacket accentuated her curves. "Think of it like this, Bluebeard," she began, taking a step forward. "Your fruit is a Logia, meaning you are earth. So try to think of the earth as...something you love. It'll be easier to picture and create things." she finished, letting a monotone expression manifest on her face. As the dominos fell into place below, a lone bird circled the skies above the island, running lap after lap around the ring that was Zork Atoll. Yet it did so whilst flying at a slow and steady pace, like a vulture patiently awaiting its opportunity to feast. The hummingbirds relayed some interesting information to Melodias. The first was that the beautiful bird he had seen on his ship was circling the island. He almost stopped to go after it but the next bit of information made him forget all about it. There was a man on the island terraforming it without regard, the corpses of both plants and animals piling up around them. His blood ran cold as he began to stride forwards, not even looking at Alva. He tapped large toppled trees as they passed them, the dead wood flashing with green as it became life. As Melodias burst through the woods into the clearing where the culprit stood, his companions stayed in the shadows of the trees. He saw a man pounding the earth apart, he saw topped trees, but what sickened him most was the rotting corpses of animals. "What the hell is wrong with you," he screamed as he entered the clearing. "What are you doing here, killing all these plants and animals while you completely mess up their habitat. Why are you doing this?" His small body was shaking with anger, he'd never seen this many corpses before. Alva followed behind him, "Yeah man, what are ye doing? This is stupid. You ought to know what happens when ye mess with nature. It just blows ye head off like it did that poor man Gaston!" Alva pointed his finger heroically towards Bluebeard. "You mess with nature, it messes with ye!" Having headed Soko's advice and tried to imagine the earth beneath his feet as gold something he loved with all his heart, he began to feel at ease feeling the earth bend to his will easier and faster however just as he was about to grasp the feeling a pair of voices shattered his concentration causing the feeling to slip away and the earth to crumble away. Snapping his eyes open he located the the source of said Voices a teen child and anther man stood on the outreaches of his created enclosure glaring at him. "Ye Bloody fools I nigh-on grasped it," shouted Bluebeard in rage as he round upon them slightly causing the earth to rumble as he began to make his way towards them. "Do ye understand wha' th' farrg ye jus' did, ye pubescent brat," questioned Bluebeard as he stood in front of them both easily towering over both Melodias and Alva glaring down upon then with nothing but fury in his golden eyes. Soko raised her eyebrows in dismay. "These poor bastards don't know what they're getting into." she thought to herself, making her way to stand beside her captain. Compared to him, she was an ant. A very intelligent ant. She stared at the two, letting an expression of surprise manifest upon her face. "What are you two doing here?" she questioned innocently. "Did we do anything wrong?" "I don't understand what I did to you at all, I really don't care though." Melodias stated coldly. He clenched his fists in an attempt to quell his shaking as he looked up at the two. "I'd like you two to explain that pile of corpses behind you. I'd like you to explain why these trees are all dead. I'd like you to explain the crooked and wrecked earth all around. Why the hell are you killing everything?" His voice was firm with an underlying tone of rage. "Exactly! Tell us what the heck ye be doing here? Understand for we give ye the fist, haha," Alva cheered bravely as he stood behind Melodias, hiding part of his body behind his own. "Ye better understand what happens when ye mess with nature! It pays ye back in full, and it seems that nature brought us here for this reason. So me guess you boy, take your lover, and bounce on outta here 'fore things get ugly!" Staring down upon the Melodias and feeling his patients hitting it's very end, Bluebeard merly snarled showing of his sharper than normal gold covered canine's. "Wha' I be doin' here ain't yer business Kid," spoke Bluebeard as he spreads his arms wide. "So wha' if a few creatures bare slaughtered 'n tree's toppled, 'tis th' circle o' life, shit happens, now run along afore any o' th' remainin' patients I 'ave left runs out 'n I become truly angry," stated Bluebeard before leveling them with an intense stare and speaking with a hollow and ominous tone of voice, "That's somethin' ye don't wants, 'cause ye definitely won't like me when I be angry,". Soko smirked, snickering as Alva spoke. "You two best listen to him, he's very scary when he's angry," she began, patronizing Alva and Melodias. She took a step forward, leaning forward slightly to make some of her womanly features in direct contact with Alva's eyes. "Plus, I'm even scarier." she finished, her crimson eyes seemingly glaring into the soul of both Alva and Melodias. "And so what if the captain killed some animal corpses, they're just animals. You can never run out of them, they keep appearing in places you don't even want them to be. So last warning, you two back the hell off." "You slaughtered them for no reason, left them to become rotting corpses. That's not the circle of life, that's called murder," he responded as he stared two angrily. Then the girl said something that just made it worse. "Just animals. Just animals? We're all animals every single one of us. People like you just get so stuck up and think you run the show. You think that you can just make corpses like nothing cause you're better than nature. Let me tell you something, nature is infinite. It was here before us and it'll be here after us. Even if the whole world went to shambles it would go on without humans. So I wont just stand here and let you think you own this forest," Melodias finished. He stepped away from the two and motioned to the forest. A herd of deer emerged, walking gently to him and Alva. He placed his arm around one as the other grazed nearby. "What did these creatures ever do to you?" Alva backed away, moving to a nearby rock large enough for him to hide behind. "Yeah, what did they ever do to ye!" he continued instigating. "Look, Melodias. Me just say we beat the livin dirt of them! Let nature feel their wrath like ye did Gaston!" Turning towards Alva before sweat dropping at his current location before shifting back to a serious look before focusing on Melodias. "I'll give ye one last time t' heed me warnin' 'n Leave afore I turn me wrath upon ye," growled out Bluebeard as he reaches for a that is tucked into his sash. Soko stared at Melodias and Alva, snickering at Alva backing away. "Is the little idiot hiding behind a child? Can't say I'm surprised." she stated, now turning towards Melodias. "You better screw off and let the captain exercise his power, or he'll rip you to pieces." "Behind you sits a mountain of corpses that I won't simply forgive. I asked you why you did it yet you refuse to answer. You threaten me, you're preparing to kill attack or harm me. Though I got a warning didn't, multiple warnings to turn back. These animals didn't get a warning. No one telling them to run and hide or to get out while they can. I bet you if a deer was in your path you'd cut it down rather than step around it." Melodias spoke venomously, his gaze cold as he counted to quell his shaking body. Alva retreated fully behind the rock, leaving only his head poking out. "Yeah! Ye would totally do that! And probably to impress that girl over there too," Alva instigated, "But me will tell ye something. She's not even that attractive! But, I guess with a mug like ye's, you musn't 'ave lots of options, haha!" Losing the last of his patients and whatever lenience he tried to hold back, Bluebeard simple with drew his pistol and fired off a single bullet which grazed the cheek of Alva all the while staring at Melodias. "I gave ye a warnin', I gave ye a chance t' weigh anchor and avoid confrontation, I even held me temper in check, but ye refused t' heed me words and continued t' push and accuse blaspheme because I'm upsettin' th' balance o' What Nature,"? Shouted out Bluebeard and he trembles in rage. "Listen lad and listen, Well Nature, wealth, Bond, Peace this entire fuckin' world means nothin' t' me, Do ye be knowin' why,"? Questioned Bluebeard as he peers down upon Melodias, arching his body down to be face to face with the much shorter male. "Because I'm a Pirate, and all that matters t' me be Freedom, th' freedom t' do as I please, To plunder till me hearts leaps with joy, Murder till me own hands be fuckin' stained crimson Red, gorge and fest on whatever I bloody want, so ye ask if a deer crossed me path would I cut it down instead o' goin' aroun'," Bluebeard stated as a grin broke out upon his face once again showing the world his gold covers Canines. "Aye, because I'm a very greedy lubber, while wealth and fame mean nothin' t' me I still want it all, that deer has meat I can feast upon so I take it, and ye lad have earned me ire and bein' th' greedy motherfucker I be, I think I'll take that foolish life o' yers," Bluebeard stated as the ground beneath then suddenly let out a horrifying wail and it began to rumble. Soko sighed. "Of course. The two idiots don't see the bigger picture." she chided to herself, cracking her knuckles. Now Bluebeard was worked up, and the idiots were about to indirectly cause more damage to this island. "Oi, Bluebeard. After you screw this island up, let's claim it as our territory. It'd allow us to get some more notoriety." Melodias flinched as he heard the pistol fire. He turned to see Alva clutch his face. He felt the ground rumble around them. In one movement he jumped backwards, looking up to face the earth shaker. "Nature will make you pay." With that single sentence the the ground began to rumble louder as two beasts emerged from the woods. They had crowned heads much like triceratops but their bodies were red, larger, and covered in glowing craters. The beasts roared as they charged towards the two. The creatures were known as smelter beasts. They were native to Melodias' home island. The craters on their backs created enough heat to melt down metal and thus they were usually used in smelting. Their thick skin was hard enough to stop most weapons. Due to their use in smelting their hides were coated with thick layers of metal that gave them even greater defense. They could also spew that molten metal as a defense mechanism. Alva, who had jumped to the ground in defense of the bullet that grazed his cheek, yelled as he cowered in fear behind the rock fully, and covered his head defensively with his hands. His eyes were sealed shut. "Go on and kick their butts Melodias!" Growling as the creatures made themselves known Bluebeard slight crouched down placing his hand on the ground palm first. "Ye don't learn do ye Kid more Animals won't do ye any good," States Bluebeard a a spike of pure Earth rears up from beneath On of the creatures impailing the creature though it's stomach before having the earth spike fling the beast towards Alva, "Primal..... Gore," panted out Bluebeard before he turns towards Soko, "I'll leave whatever Beast that show up t' ye". Turning back towards Melodias Bluebeard raises from his crouch before dashing forwards towards Melodias drawing his Saber and swinging it down towards him with the intention of beheading him. "I dunno how ye brought forth thoese creatures but I'll slaughtered ever single one afore I rip ye limb from limb,". Soko only smirked as Bluebeard told her to handle herself. It was rare that the man let someone else kill something he could have. She would relish this kill. She stood still as the creature charged at her, stretching. As soon as it was close, she punched the beast. Normally, her fist would have exploded, yet due to her Devil Fruit's power, her muscles only increased in density, and instead her fist cracked the skull of the beast, and it fell to her feet. She stared at the group of men, and she smiled. "You two boys want to run now? Or do you want bossman over here to break you into pieces?" she asked, taunting the two men. In the blink of an eye, a flock of orange feathers swarmed in from the skies. So quick was it that its figure as a whole was left obscured by its swift motion alone; riled talons lashing out in detest, what could have only been a pheonix given its unpredictable appearance and otherwise timely arrival sought to grip the babbling woman by her shoulders and then spring upwards, back into the skies. Should it be successful in its capture of her, then the large bird would have continued soaring through the rest of the island, until arriving upon a more secluded and remote location where the two of them could sort matters out for themselves… individually. The two beasts crashed to the ground, one falling beside the rock Alva hid behind and the other in front of the strong-woman. There was barely room for Melodias to yell though as Bluebeard dashed towards him, his sword descending towards his neck. The young man was quite fed up though and did not flee, instead blocking the sword with his hand. Upon contact the blade flashed green and became a simple green snake that slid by him, thumping against the ground. Melodias jumped backwards, once agains making some distance between the angered man and himself. "You kill and kill but nature will always go on, you'll fall by its hand one day." Melodias replied as he grabbed a couple pebbled from the ground and threw them in Bluebeard's direction, in a flash of green the pebbles were small hornets, diving towards the man. Alva rolled forward to avoid the beast. "Freak me man!" he exclaimed cowardly, watching as Melodias caught the sword with his hands alone. He smiled in excitement, and threw his arms in the air cheerfully. "You show him who the heck is yer boss, Melodias! Me believe in ye!" Feeling his limit fastly approaching and knowing it’s been a few days since his last rest Bluebeard finally snapped and gave into the boiling rage buried deep within. "Enough o' this Nonesense"! Roared Bluebeard as he stomps his foot towards the ground in anger which accidentally in his blind rage created a fissure and cause various rock pillars to form well into the sky poercing the clouds above. "I grow tired o' these Games Boy!" He shouted and accidentally swinging his hands forward causing the pillars of earth to brake up creating a small gather of fallen debris which soon clatter together creating a small meteor shower raining down upon the island center Soko had noticed the winged beast soaring towards her. She let the beast grab her and eventually toss her down. She got to her feet, smirking. "So, either you're a Zoan, or a really smart bird. I'm going to go with the former." she stated, stretching herself out. She was simply stalling for time as her eyes soared around the area, attempting to analyze the area so she could find the swiftest way to defeat the bird. Roaring Stone Melodias stumbled back as the pillars rose from the earth and the ground split apart. "Leave this island alone you monster!" He roared as he fell on his butt, though he quickly pulled himself back to his feet. As he was stumbling the hornets that he sent towards Bluebeard hit their mark as multiple stingers pierced the left arm and shoulder of the angered pirate. Melodais stood in awe as he saw the pillars rising far above the island. "Thankfully I've met an animal that's quite adept at dealing with rocks." He smirked as the ground rumbled and a large centipede-like creature burst from the ground. "It's called a Diggerpede, though this one's only a juvenile." He laughed as the creature shot toward the pillar, burrowing through it as its massive frame bore tunnels, the size of small ship hulls, through the pillars. As it charged forwards the pillars split apart into a flurry of rocks, that begun to rain upon the island like meteors. "What the hell are you?" Melodias shook his head as he began to run back meeting up with Alva behind the boulder before slamming his hand into it, another smelter beast appearing before them in a flash of green. The beast quickly circled its massive hide around them to protect them from the rocky rain. The diggerpede soon followed, recovering from the shock of the bursting pillars it rushed back to help shield the two. Melodias panted as he attempted to wipe his cuts with a cloth, many of the falling rocks had drawn blood before he could shield himself. "AHHHHH!!! WHAT YE HECK!?!" Alva shrieked in fear as he stumbled backwards away from the beast. "Melodias, get that thing away from me! How in the heck did ye even do such a thing in the first place? No!" Alva continued frantically, "Me don't even care. Me need to get out of here!" Alva looked around for an exit, but, of course, Bluebeard had been destroying the terrain around him. His best bet, for now, would be stay with Melodias. Though, that didn't mean he liked any of the bets he was taking. Growling in Anger due to being stung because of his own recklessness Bluebeard clenched his fist in anger while ignoring any pain he felt before glaring bloody daggers at Melodias while bring his now earth covered fist back "'tis th' End o' this Game Boy, I 'ave no more time t' waste" He Roared as he turned to look for Soko "Soko come here strumpet 'tis time we get movin' I be gonna send this entire farrgin' island t' Davy Jones Locker". He ordered as the earth began to shake horribly As the rain of rocks stopped the earth began to shake. The beasts broke the circle and looked to the man causing it all. "Bring me his head." Melodias spoke in a low growl, it was the same tone he had assumed with Gaston. The two beasts immediately charged the man. The Smelter Beast aimed to trample him while the Diggerpede aimed to rip him apart with its drill-like mandibles. The forest behind him began to shake as well. Growling in frustration after realizing that his Navigator didn’t hear him over the sound of fallen rubble and watching as he was attacked by those creatures that the Melodies sent towards him, Bluebeard clenched his fist in anger as his muscles began to bulge allowing the creatures to charge at him before suddenly punching the ground beneath them creating a small earth based tidal Wave that threw the creatures of aim and continued on towards Melodies and Alva as he collapsed on to one knew grasping his chest and breathing heavily. The Smelter beast was thrown back by the wave, crashing to the earth as it did. The Diggerpede however borrowed through the wave, continuing towards Bluebeard. Melodias stepped back as he eyed the wave. Running backwards he jumped an overturned tree before tapping it. In a bright green flash the tree had become a very large dragonfly, capable of accommodating at least 5 people on its back. It had eight wings that buzzed excitedly, causing the air to shake. Melodias hopped on it and the commanded it to fly, as it did it grabbed Alva with its legs, flying into the sky as the wave shook the earth below them, uprooting a few trees as it went. "Get him." Melodias hummed at the Diggerpede. As he was picked up, Alva’s eyes flickered into life, the adrenaline from being pulled into the air overwhelming whatever rational thought occupied his mind. “Hey Melodias, let me down from here!! This is scary!!” Feeling things were getting out of control and pointless to continue Bluebeard gathered his remaining strength to quickly dash towards Soko and place her over his shoulder before glaring at Melodias as he wills the earth to rise up beneath him bringing him higher. "Ye got lucky this time brat, pray we ne'er cross path again 'cause next time ye won't live past th' day" growled out Bluebeard as he stomps on the ground causing the tower of earth he created to boost himself up to crumble creating a blockade enabling him to escape. Rude Awakening "After we get them Alva, I refuse to let them escape after what they did to those creatures." Melodias roared. The Diggerpede charged forwards only to be knocked up by a rising pillar of rocks. It impacted it directly under the head, stunning it. It fell to the ground as Bluebeard and Soko made their escape. "Come back you bastards." Melodias cried as his dragonfly charged downwards, towards where the two had tried to escape. Melodias' eyes gleamed with anger as they swooped downwards. However as they did they heard a strange noise. It sounded pleasant, folky, almost like a fiddle. Melodias, Alva, and the Insect froze midair. It was like they were petrified but completely conscious. "What the hell is going on?" Melodias thought, unable to move his mouth to speak. It was then that he felt them losing altitude, the insect was no longer moving and so downward they spiraled, crashing into the dirt below. "What happened?" Melodias groaned, sitting up from the dirt. "Alva are you okay?" He could still hear the music but it was no longer making him freeze, if anything it seemed closer. Melodias looked up to the sky and saw a shadow descending as the music swelled, growing louder as the figure fell further. He sat in awe as the it fell faster and faster towards the island, the music swelling into a greater and greater crescendo. Finally it peaked as the figure drew the bow across the strings once more and crashed into the island, feet first. Earth shot into the air as a massive cloud of debris flew up from the impact. The air became thick with dust as Melodias began to cough, coving his mouth with his sleeve. "Wonderful." A voice called through the dust. Melodias peered towards the noise as the dust began to settle. He could see a vague silhouette of the man, holding his bow up to his strings once again. With what looked like a forceful strike, he pulled the bow across the strings. A hissing of sorts was heard as a massive force blasted the dust away, leaving the air once again clear. Before them stood a man dressed head to toe in black. A large brimmed hat covered most of his face, leaving only his devilish smile in sight. "This island is beautiful as hell. Wouldn't you say boys?" The man laughed. Well, heck can’t be that beautiful, ye know?” Alva retorted quickly, his tone growing somewhat more serious than otherwise anticipated, as if he was renewed with a sense of certainty. “You’re vice Admiral Valentine, right? I recognize ye from the news coo.” Though, that was a lie. There was something more about this man that Alva recognized, something that seemed so familiar, so close, yet so far. He tickled the hilt of his sword gently. “What is a man of ye stature doing around these parts?” "Indeed I am, glad people know about me out here." The man chuckled, "I was just passing through, when I noticed those you and those friends of yours having a little scuffle. Seems this one doesn't like when nature gets disturbed." Valentine grinned as he motioned to Melodias. "He seems quite young for this." "So you're part of the Marines huh. I hear you people do stuff like this to islands." Melodias spoke, his tone already venomous. It didn't help that the man who had attempted to kill this island had gotten away but now this Valentine character had fallen out of the sky, making another dent in the island. "So fierce for a young one." The demon replied, scratching his chin. "Yeah I suppose we do, what with all the purging and buster calls and such." He grinned as Melodias' eye twitched, he was clearly striking a nerve. "I'm really here cause I've heard stirrings of that man out here, a pirate with a logia in these parts is quite rare. I'm simply here to see them for myself and I must say they put on quite a show, especially their captain." Valentine sighed lifting his brim to glare at the two. "But I must say boy, you're definitely something else, you took on a logia and lived, especially for someone so young. I have to say I've taken an interest in you." "Why do you people do it?" Melodias roared. "Why do you take nature apart as if it means nothing to you?" He called out, pointing an accusing finger at Valentine. "What did the creatures of this world do to you?" "Nothing." Valentine replied with a devilish grin. If there was one thing that was going to get this kid to really show him his powers, it'd be besmirching nature. "The world exists for humans to play with, to rip apart and make anew until they've fed their desires and moved on." He continued, watching Melodias spasm with anger. "I myself just like to watch it all come crashing down, burning away to ash." To punctuate his final line he extended his right hand towards the forest beside them. In moments a massive waves of flames was rushing through it, turning the once healthy trees into a graveyard of charred wood and ash. “Melodias,” Alva begun, “we shouldn’t fight this. We should leave. If we fight this, he’ll kill us.” His hand fell off the edges of his sword onto his side, relaxed, yet his eyes remained glued to the Valentine’s figure, as if he was trying to figure out who he was exactly. “I have a feeling we’ll be seeing this guy soon again anyway.” "No I'm not letting another person who treats nature like this get away." Melodias spoke as he slammed his hands into the nearest fallen trees, creating another smelter beast and diggerpede to aid him. "Get him." He cried with malice. "You should have listened to you friend there boy." The devil laughed as the two beasts charged him. The smelter beast reached him first, ramming him with all its might. Valentine however caught the beast by the head and tossed it over his head in one motion. As the beast flew through the air it was surrounded by hundreds of cross shaped blades made of fire. The whole armory of blades impaled the beast at once, reducing it to a dead trunk before it even hit the ground. It was then that the diggerpede burst from the ground behind him in an attempt to bite him, only for him to disappear. The demon re-appeared behind the great beast and released another blast of flame turing it, and the tree it turned back into, to ashes. He landed on the ground with a smirk on his face as he stared down Medlodias. "I'm gonna kill you, you nature destroying fr.." Melodias' ranting was cut short by Valentine, who had appeared directly in from on him, and kneed him in the stomach. He was quickly caught by the much taller man and thrown across the field, where Valentine appeared once again and caught him by the face. "I don't think you really understand what a power gap is." Valentine sighed as he tossed back to where Alva was standing, appearing above him and kicking him into the ground, leaving a large indent. "I hope you find yourself a good doctor and come find me again. I'm gonna really enjoy this once you can fight back." The demon laughed as he angled a finger down towards Melodias and released a condensed bolt of flame, that pierced his chest. "Melodias!" Alva shrieked, his eyes piercing through the atmosphere like a metal sword in a wreathe of flames. "You're a piece of crap ye know that? The kid is just a boy," he argued intensely as he ran over to Melodias, sliding onto his knees beside him. Alva ripped off a piece of his shirt, pressing it against the wound on Melodias's chest. "Me just knew it looking at ye; something was off about ye the moment me set my eyes upon ye. No idea how ye be a marine." "Akaoni." Valentine replied. "Why do you think I got that name?" He laughed, stepping back as he appeared a couple yards away from the two. "Next time you might want to try stepping in, your child was off his leash for too long." Valentine laughed. "I'll be keeping you two in mind though, maybe next time you'll be worthy of a bounty or something." Valentine laughed before disappearing into thin air. "Alva, I'm sorry." Melodias groaned. "I couldn't help it he..he burned all of it, all of that life is gone." He groaned, holding the cloth in place he grabbed some dirt and sprinkled it on his chest. In a flash of green it became a hundred or so ants that grasped the cloth and Melodias' clothes with their large jaws. "This'll hold it for now and thankfully the fire stopped the bleeding. I think we should find a doctor though, my left arm feels kinda numb and my body hurts all over." "Me told ye, ye need to be more careful out here Melodias, especially with that guy right there. Me don't know if ye know about the marines, but they be some strong ones there. They be in a different league then you and I," Alva said so, picking the younger, much smaller man up into his arms. "Me will carry ye, but that's about the best me can do." "Thanks Alva really, I owe ya one." For as well as he played it off Melodias was quite injured and sighed with relief as Alva lifted him from the ground. "I suppose I was too rash thinking I could take someone like that on after a fight. But I'll stop him, I swear." Melodias called out triumphantly, only to cough up a bit of blood afterwards. "Let's hurry back to the ship and find me some herbs or something I can dull the pain with. Then we gotta find a medical professional." Alva nodded. "Yeah, we'll do it together kid," he smiled. "Just get some rest." He walked towards their ship, the thoughts of the man that attacked Melodias flooding his mind. Just who was he? What was his purpose, and why did Alva recognize him so much. It must've been linked to his past, to why he couldn't remember anything at all, to the amnesia that haunted him daily. Finding that man, simply put, was the perhaps the answers to his problems. He would find him, not just for Melodias' revenge, but to restore his lost thoughts. He had to. The Monarch As Alva was caught up in his thoughts, a colourful monarch butterfly flew in front of the two of them, however it went unnoticed as Alva walked right past it. The butterfly then began flying in circles around them before landing on the burned flesh on Melodias' back. That's when the insect spoke. "Anou... you were trying to help the island, right-chouka?" "Melodias heard the creature but did not look. He could sense it was a butterfly though. "Hello little butterfly, yes I was trying to protect you island." He coughed, his body still hurting all over. "Alas I could not I just wasn't strong enough." He sighed, craning his neck in an attempt to see the creature. "Er, who are ye speaking to, Melodias? Your head be okay?" Alva inquired curiously, yet confused. "Don't worry, we're gonna find ye a doctor. Me promise on me life, ya hear?" "Souka..." the butterfly muttered to itself as it began to morph, becoming a small humanoid no larger than he was as a butterfly. He had red hair that was long for his short stature, reaching down to his waist. He had baggy, pure white pants which had a black design at the bottom, and lacked a shirt, though his gorgeous wings remained. He seemed slightly confused though. "Souka? What flower...?" Head briefly tilted in thought, he was brought back to what was in front of him when Melodias winced in pain. "Etto... I noticed the fight you had with that other man. The one that had red hair... or did he have blue hair...?" His eyes then began to wander, as he began to think that maybe it was actually a woman who this man had been fighting, before said thoughts moved on to something completely different. Remembering that he had been in the middle talking, he focused back on Melodias. "I don't usually concern myself with the affairs of men, as I prefer to immerse myself in the local flora of different islands, but I saw you fighting... someone..." eyes momentarily flicking away, "in defence of this island-chou. You shouldn't have to suffer for standing up for the island, so I want to help you out how I can." Reaching into a sac on his waist, the tiny man pulled out some peat moss and began putting it down on the wound. "This should help for now, though you'll need more than just some sphagnum-chou." "A red haired man, yes." Melodias spoke. He didn't know if he was being delirious or not but when he felt the moss on his found he could only believe that the dwarf was there. "I've never seen someone like you before." He spoke softly, mystified at the small human-like creature before him. "I appreciate your help maybe once we reach the ship you'll be able to whip something better up. I collected a lot of herbs that I don't quite understand, maybe you can though. "My name is Melodias by the way, nice to meet you." He grinned as he stretched out his pinky towards the creature, hoping for a handshake of sorts. Alva watched the events unfold, though from the sheer fear that enveloped his body—a fear that he pinned on the talking, human-shifting butterfly—he paid it no attention to prevent him from dropping Melodias and running away. He continued walking, noticeably faster than before as he desired to get to the ship and away from the confines of his insane island. The small man looked at Melodias' pinky with confusion. Unsure about the man's meaning, he simply hopped of his back and fluttered behind them as Alva continued towards their ship, pondering the meaning of Melodias' pinky. Melodias noticed the man's confusion and chuckled a little. "I was trying to shake your hand but fine is far bigger than yours, I figured my pinky would be better suited for such a task." He explained. Leaning his head to the right he caught the ship in his view. "Quick Alva get us over there." "I'm going as fast as me can, Melodias!" Alva complained, before sighing and taking off in the direction of the ship, jogging at what others would consider a leisurely pace until he reached the deck of their beloved Gaston, named after the man who brought the crew together in some twisted sense of a way. "Happy?" Asclepius just became more confused by Melodias' explaination. "Why would we be shaking hands? Is that some sort of ritual, chou?" Arriving at their ship, he became curious, flying away from the other two he had been following, inspecting the entire thing, inside and out. After doing a self-guided tour, he came back to Melodias carrying some herbs. "I found some stuff that might be helpful to you. Here," he stated, rubbing the herbs he picked up on Melodias' severe wounds. Asclepius then ground different plants in his hands before flying to the sea to pick up an armful of seawater, allowing it to mix with the plants he had just ground up. Flying over top of Melodias, he sprinkled the water mixture over him. "Anou... that should help your sore body, chou. In a couple of days, you should feel good again." "Indeed I am Alva." Melodias grinned as Asclepius flew off and collected some herbs from the ship. Melodias let him go about his process without much of a fuss, only speaking when he had finished. "I'm already feeling a little better." He chirped, moving to sit himself up a little. "The handshake is a form of greeting, I guess you don't have that in your culture huh." He shrugged. "Regardless I'd like to thank you for your help." He paused a second as if he was trying to recall something. "Oh yes, you never did mention your name to Alva or I. What is it?" "Greeting, chou?" Asclepius flew closer to Melodias. "Oh, my name is Asclepius. But I guess you can call me Asclepius, chou." "Pleased to meet you Asceplius." Melodais grinned, "What are you doing out on this island, if I may ask? Do you live here or are you just passing through?" "Anou... no? Why would I live here? This isn't my home," Asclepius was confused all over again. "I just wander around islands, studying the different plant life, chou. I find it, anou... interesting?" "That's interesting, I study animals life." Melodias spoke, his grin widening as an idea formed in his head. "HEY how would you like to join my crew? Alva and I are pirates sworn to protect nature and preserve it. That sounds like something you'd fit right in with." Ascelpius thought about it for a moment. "That could be fun," he said. "Anou... I guess I could try that for a while, chou." "ALVA WE GOT A NEW CREWMATE!" Melodias shouted excitedly, waving his arms as he almost ripped his wounds back open. Category:Role-Plays